Franklin Templeton, a U.S.-based financial services firm managing $1.6 trillion in assets, revealed on Feb. 12 that it had introduced its OnChain US Government Money Fund (FOBXX) on the Solana blockchain. This expansion marks another milestone for FOBXX, which first launched in 2021 and is now available on multiple blockchains.
FOBXX primarily invests in U.S. government securities, cash, and fully collateralized repurchase agreements, ensuring minimal credit risk. As of Jan. 31, 2025, the fund held $512 million in assets, offering a seven-day effective yield of 4.2%.
“With this launch, Franklin Templeton is further broadening its presence in the layer-1 blockchain ecosystem as Solana continues attracting institutional players,” a company spokesperson told.
The fund operates across several blockchains, including layer-1 networks like Ethereum and Avalanche, as well as Ethereum layer-2 solutions such as Arbitrum, Base, Polygon, and Aptos. It is recognized as the first U.S. mutual fund to leverage blockchain technology for transaction processing and record-keeping, with each BENJI token representing one share in the fund.
The move follows the recent debut of another tokenized institutional investment fund, the Apollo Diversified Credit Securitize Fund, on Solana.
Franklin Templeton has been actively expanding its crypto offerings, having launched Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in January and July 2024, respectively. The company is also awaiting regulatory approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to introduce a Crypto Index ETF.
Further strengthening its foothold in Solana, Franklin Templeton registered a Delaware-based trust on Feb. 10, potentially linked to a Solana ETF. The launch aligns with a growing trend of Solana ETFs emerging in recent months, though regulatory hurdles remain due to ongoing lawsuits arguing that SOL is an unregistered security.
Despite Solana’s reputation for memecoins, institutional interest in the blockchain has surged. Investment in Solana-based decentralized applications climbed 54% in Q3 2024, reaching $173 million. CoinShares also reported an increasing number of hedge funds and wealth managers allocating to SOL throughout 2024.
After a significant downturn that saw SOL’s price drop below $10 following FTX’s collapse, the token has rebounded. It reached a 52-week high of $265.10, fueled in part by renewed momentum from former U.S. President Donald Trump’s memecoin launch on the network.
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